


A Jake feeling

by Seriesthoughts



Series: Grey's Anatomy stories [10]
Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Gen, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-22 16:53:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22085770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seriesthoughts/pseuds/Seriesthoughts
Summary: A little talk on the phone between Addison and Amelia after recent “reveals" before season 16 second part. It was a gift for a friend.
Relationships: Addison Montgomery/Amelia Shepherd
Series: Grey's Anatomy stories [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1586137
Kudos: 3





	A Jake feeling

Since she learned about her baby’s father real identity, Amelia had gone back to Meredith’s home and was now pacing up and down in her room, slightly panicking.

She never expected Owen to get closer again in that “area”, let alone like this. But here she was, having to consider everything again with a different angle.

She was a mess, trying to think of all the outcomes and every conversation she’d have to be involved in. She needed to talk about this to someone.

She pondered for a while about who could fit the bill. Meredith was definitely out of the question. Although the two women got along now, she knew Mer was a judgy one. And she was not ready to hear it.

Link was also a big no. On the sole fact that he was the father-not-the-father of that baby.

Maggie was hardly able to keep a secret for too long. It could be seen all over her face, and ultimately, she ended up telling the other side in some cryptic way. Also, there was no way she was in shape to listen to her right now.

Sadly, she had heard about her quitting on her way home. Right now, Maggie was in a real bad place. She knew she needed space, so she had let her be alone in her room. But in due time, she would try to reach out to her.

Since there was noone who she could confide in here, she naturally thought about the only person who knew her better. The one who was always there, even when she pushed away. The one she told once she wanted to grow up to be like her.

Taking her phone out, she composed the number she now knew by heart. When she first met Addison, she hadn’t cared for memorizing it. But with time, they formed a bond so great and they would call each other a lot, to the point it annoyed Derek sometimes.

That’s when she learned it and never forgot.

A few rings were heard as she was waiting for the other party to take the call, biting her lip. Looking at the time on her alarm clock, she cursed while seeing it was a little late. But hopefully not too much so she wouldn’t wake up Addison’s child.

Also, she figured he would have been used to late phone calls, being the son of two doctors, so maybe it wasn’t a deal breaker for him to still sleep. Plus, she had no idea at what time a kid would have to be in bed.

God, she would need to learn that at least at some point.

\- Amelia ? Addison’s voice suddenly popped into her thoughts.

On the other end of the phone, Amelia failed to answer, not knowing where to start. She was suddenly overwhelmed with all she had to say.

\- It has been a while, continued her interlocutor.

No resentment in her voice. She was just stating a fact. Even though they both told each other about the important things, they were both busy surgeons and therefore, didn’t always have time to make long house calls to each other.

Not to mention, Addison had Henry.

When Amelia still didn’t respond, Addison grew worry. Since Amelia informed her about the pregnancy in a previous short exchange, her heart sank at the thought something was wrong about it.

Carefully, she tried not to jump to any conclusion.

\- Amelia ? Are you okay ?

Snapping back to the current conversation, Amelia finally said something.

\- Yeah, sorry. I… Just wanted to talk a bit. Is this a bad time ?

\- No, not at all. Amelia, what is it ? She encouraged her.

Furrowing her brows with concern, she waited for her to open up. While in the distance, Jake was staring at his wife from time to time, hoping she wasn’t getting bad news once more, so late into the night.

\- It’s… I’ve got an ultrasound today.

Hearing this, Addison felt shivers running down her spine. She tried to be gentle while asking, but couldn’t find a better way than voicing her concerns directly.

\- Oh god, is it… Is something wrong with the baby ?

\- No, no. Nothing wrong, immediately countered Amelia, not wanting Addison to think the worst.

At those words, Addison let a big sigh of relief out. Maybe this call from Amelia wasn’t for bad news after-all. Relaxing a bit more, she kept listening.

Amelia fell silent again for a little while. She was wondering if she should go straight to the Owen part, but her heart was carrying still another point of anxiety. One she wanted help growing away from.

And it happened to be that Addison, as a kick-ass OB and fetal surgeon, would be the best one to ask.

\- Do you… Is it… Is it possible that an ultrasound could miss a baby lacking a brain and we find out later ?

Addison suddenly felt a little sad at the mention of Amelia’s unicorn baby. Even though it wasn’t her loss, she could never forget how hurt she was, seeing her sister go through all this.

It was an awful night for everyone who had a heart.

\- Amelia, no. She replied, gently, reassuring her instantly. It’s not something any trained eye can miss, and you know it. But wait… Was this your first ultrasound ?

Although Amelia didn’t say it, it didn’t take a genius to figure out that, if Amelia could worry about that just now, it was because she never checked before.

\- Yeah, the neurosurgeon admitted. I was too scared. After Christopher, I thought…

Addison felt another painful come back to that baneful day. Not letting Amelia trail off to darker thoughts, she felt an urge to push the comfort further.

\- Amelia, what happened with Christopher was a one in a million chance. The odds of it happening again are so thin. History is not repeating itself, you were just unlucky.

Amelia had a nervous chuckle at the last words. She replied with a slight mock in her tone, self-wallowing a bit.

\- Unlucky, she repeated. Seems to be my life’s theme.

Addison frowned, feeling she was hinting at something with this.

\- But the baby is healthy, right ? She wanted her to confirm.

\- Yes. It is. Just um…

The redhead sighed when she realized there was another shoe to drop. Of course, she should have figured. She just hoped it was something she could help fixing.

Not knowing how to announce her truth, Amelia ended up blurting it out.

\- Owen is the father !

Addison let out a loud gasp, feeling now both excited and confused. For a second, Addison had a doubt in her mind. Trying to brush it off, she ended up voicing it half way.

\- Oh Amelia, tell me you didn’t…

\- What ?

Amelia frowned, failing to understand what she meant at first. Then it hit her, and she let out a loud slightly offended gasp.

\- Hey ! She exclaimed. I never cheated on anyone ! It’s not…

But she stayed quiet, so Amelia clarified, nervousness and laughter mixed in her voice. While she did, the fetal surgeon was sighing in relief.

\- Okay, so… turns out I miscalculated the time frame of this pregnancy. I missed four weeks and uh… Yeah, I was with Owen at the time. Not Link.

On the other side of the line, Addison couldn’t believe her ears. She didn’t know how to react, although she didn’t have to. Now that Amelia finally managed to confess, she was basically ranting about everything happening lately.

Addison didn’t even need to ask to catch up on her life.

\- And you know, a few days ago, I went to tell Owen about the baby. Because I thought he had a right to know, and also, we co-parent Leo, so we’re kinda still involved anyway. He’s still my family. I mean, there’s Leo. But now, I also have to tell him this one bun is his.

As Amelia wouldn’t stop talking, Addison was starting to see the picture of what could be. The one Amelia had pushed down into an inaccessible part of her heart. 

\- There’s also Teddy and Link. Oh god, how am I gonna… ?

At some point, Addison couldn’t help but voice her thoughts.

\- You should go to him, Amelia.

\- What ? Who ? Amelia feigned innocence, although she had a small idea of what she meant.

\- Owen.

Hearing this, Amelia defended herself. She couldn’t admit what Addison was trying to say yet.

\- What ? No, that’s not… He has Teddy. And I have Link. We’re not…

Addison sighed at this. Even if she couldn’t deny Link was a great man, at least from what she heard, he wasn’t Owen. With Link, she was settling into a comfortable scenario, sure.

But with Owen there was more. It was about passion, and hurt and anger too, but true love was always a mix of all this. What Owen and Amelia had, and probably still would, had Amelia fought more, was special. It was a thousand times stronger and wilder.

Addison knew too well how hard it was to chase after second best. Although it was peaceful, it could also prove to be uneventful. That’s how she felt, as she went from one man to another in the pursuit of love and a family, before she finally found Jake.

But until him, it had been only settling. She couldn’t stand by and watch while Amelia was making that mistake. She had found her Jake, and she needed to see it.

\- Amelia… Look, from what you told me, I know Link is a great, hell probably an amazing guy. But… he’s not Owen. I mean, I never heard you be so much in love that when you said things about him. With Link, it’s just… the easy way. And you deserve the real thing. And it’s obvious you still love him so damn much. You can keep invoking Leo as an excuse, but I know you Amelia.

Amelia couldn’t deny it anymore. And if she was being honest with herself, she had started to doubt after their last conversation in Pac-North parking lot. In that moment, all her feelings had come rushing back to her. Even though she hadn’t be able to admit it to herself, and tried to shove them down again.

But since ignoring it didn’t really work, Addison’s words sounded even more convincing.

\- But Link, she muttered. This…

\- Yes, it will crush him, Addison finished for her. But Amelia, like you said, he’s a great guy. Don’t you think it’s best if he knows now rather than keeping false hope ? If you stay with him out of “duty”, you will end up resenting him and it will crash anyway. If you tell him now, and be honest, he will be hurt, sure. But he will move on and probably meet his own one and only. Don’t let him remember you by the pain you inflicted. Let it end with the great memories you forged, with honesty and respect, as you acted when you were together.

When she was met with silence once more, Addison waited a bit before hearing a loud shakily sigh, followed by a small sniff. Touched by her words, the neurosurgeon had been crying silently, unable to hold it in.

She was blaming the damn hormones for making her such a crier. Wiping her eyes out with one of her sleeves, she finally felt composed enough to reply.

\- Damn, you’re right. Can you… Can you stay a little more on the phone, while I calm down ? I wanna be strong for this.

\- Of course.

As she was slowly feeling better, neither women made a sound. Until Amelia expressed her trail of thoughts.

\- Addie ? She called out.

Addison smiled. She always found endearing how she would call her by her nickname when she needed reassurance but was hesitating to ask for it.

\- Yeah ?

\- What if he doesn’t want me back ? I mean, he has Teddy… And they have a daughter.

Addison seriously pondered about that question. Of course, she didn’t really know Owen, so she only had Amelia’s stories to make up her mind. But somehow, she believed he was feeling the same.

\- Well, weren’t you the one who told me they were kind of a mess, from what you gathered ?

\- Yeah, she chuckled, I was being petty.

Although what she learned about them wasn’t painting a great picture of Teddy and Owen’s relationship, she had to admit she commented on it to her sister only out of spite. She just didn’t realise it at the time.

\- Yeah, well, if you only told facts though, it’s not glorious, if you want my opinion. Also, I don’t think he’ll reject you anyway.

\- What makes you so sure ?

Although Addison wanted to reply and give her all the reasons why she believed Amelia to be the real love of Owen’s life, she couldn’t stand on such arguments as it had all been told to her. She never actually witnessed it.

\- I just have a feeling, she simply said in return.

Starting to feel better, Amelia wanted to believe her words, even if they had no sustainable proof to them. But she couldn’t miss the occasion to tease her about it.

\- I hope this isn’t a “Sam is the one” type of feeling then, because we all know how that ended up.

Addison chuckled at Amelia’s replica. As her lack of filter was back, she realized her little sister was truly feeling lighter.

\- No, it’s a Jake type of feeling, but thanks for that ! She replied, feigning taking offence.

As the tone gradually became more joyful, Amelia was back to her normal self, joking about it.

\- Well, if it’s a Jake then… Although it’s true both of them are tens. It adds up, she concluded with a small lust in her voice.

\- Amelia ! Addison scolded gently. 

\- What ? You’re the one that landed Jake, can’t I at least admire his beauty ? Also, I’m sorry but these hormones are making me damn horny.

Addison rolled her eyes and chuckled again. She felt like she could hear Violet saying “filter” from a distance.

Breathing in and out heavily, Amelia composed herself again, determined to get through this predicament with honesty. Hopefully, her feelings would get reciprocated again.

She never wish to be a homewrecker for Teddy and Owen. She always stated that she would step aside and not fight. But in her current situation, having acknowledge what she still felt after everything, she couldn’t afford to stay quiet.

Whatever the answer was, she needed to know.

\- Okay, let’s talk about something else. What are you up to these days ?

Even though they exchanged a few messages the past few months, it had been a while since they’ve been able to talk properly. Also, Addison started to explain her current life, although there was not much to come buy.

She was living the peaceful routine, really. And she loved every minute of it.

\- Well, it’s been good. Henry’s perfect. And of course, we’re over-busy with work, as always. Also, Jake’s been eyeing me for the past half hour to check on my mental state, but other than that, she teased, knowing pertinently that her husband could hear her.

Amelia chuckled when she heard a “hey !” coming from an exposed Jake. Even though he realized from the beginning he would get noticed, he still felt the urge to playfully protest.

In that moment, Amelia’s heart swelled with gratefulness for her sister to have found someone so focused on her well being. She was in good hands.

Then, Addison continued by enumerating the peculiar cases, ending on the cutest Henry stories. Amelia was listening and commenting from time to time, happy to hear about everything.

\- And Charlotte ? Any news from the Coops ? The neurosurgeon asked once she was done with her recap.

\- Charlotte is fine. Busy. Mad at Coop sometimes ? Well, you know…

\- Classic Charlotte, Amelia chuckled. What did he do this time ?

She could only have a small idea of it, but it didn’t take a genius to figure that out. As Charlotte always said, she was dealing with not four but five children in her own home. It couldn’t be easy everyday.

\- Something he forgot to do. I’m not sure it was that important but it seems she became a super-protective mom, so Coop says it’s hard to please her standards.

\- And to think she didn’t even want kids at first. I knew she was gonna be a mama bear.

On each end of the phone, they both smiled fondly at the thought of Charlotte, doing anything to protect her family. They remembered the time when Mason came into her life, and slowly took over her heart, opening her up to the beauty of motherhood.

\- You should call her sometime, she’d like that.

\- I should. Although I’m always worried I’m gonna step into a moment of mess. I mean, they’ve got four kids ! I should probably call Sheldon too, she added after a quick silence.

While Addison approved, they let their minds wander off to a time where they were all in each other’s lives. Sometimes, it was baffling how quickly time had passed, how many things happened since. How many more people they lost.

But there was no point in dwelling on it. That’s what grief was for. And they overcame theirs already.

It was just hard not to think of those bad times too, since they had lived through a lot of the same ones.

\- Thanks for the talk, Addie. Amelia finally said. It was nice to catch up.

\- Anytime. You know I’m here for you, Amelia.

Amelia smiled fondly while hearing this.

\- I know. I meant it when I said you were always a better sister than the ones I had. Which reminds me : I should tell you about the last Shepherd family dinner sometime. It was…

\- Rough ?

\- Doesn’t even begin to cover it ! Let’s just say that I’m not gonna be home again anytime soon, she offered, making Addison laugh.

Being Derek’s ex-wife, Addison had her fair share of feuds and grievances with the Shepherd sisters. But Amelia stories always baffled her. She still couldn’t fathom why her own blood would tear her apart so much, everytime.

Sure, the brain surgeon had flaws, but she made amends ages ago. But again, one could argue she was not always getting along with Archer either.

Although that was different. Her brother and her still loved each other, deep down. However, each time she listened to Amelia about her own siblings, she wasn’t so sure anything coming out of their mouth was filled with love.

So she never pushed Amelia to mend these relationships or even reach out in the slightest. Because she knew too well how horrible they could all be. Both by experience and what she had been told.

Tackling other subjects and sharing anecdotes, they kept speaking for a while before it was time to hang up. At some point, Addison offered to take a flight and come see her, but Amelia gracefully declined.

She knew how busy being a surgeon and a mother could be. But also, she wanted to get through all this by her own strength. Although she promised Addison to call once in a while.

Sometimes, the latter wish she would live closer, so she could show up when her little sister needed her. But she was confident in Amelia’s wonderful progress, since the days where she had to intervene to save her life.

So she knew, even without her being physically there, that that brilliant neurosurgeon, who was once in everyone’s shadow, would prevail. No matter the challenges thrown at her, she would come out stronger.

And it was even more true now that she had another life to care for and protect. Finally, she was gonna be able to give that particular type of love she was craving for so long. Even though she had been too scared to admit it before.

That’s who Amelia Shepherd was. And Addison couldn’t be prouder to be related to her.

**Author's Note:**

> I've been asked for a second part of that fic on tumblr, where Amelia would tell Owen about the pregnancy. I'll try to write and post it soon.


End file.
